Is it possible to use the Visual Studio compiler without the rest of the program?

Question

C++ / C#

On Linux, I'm used to using a text editor and gcc. And here, as I understand it, Visul Studio has a monopoly (mingw does not count, since it is not native, but broadcasts posix calls)

Answer 1

Of course you can.
The compiler package includes build utilities: nmake and msbuild.
nmake is a heavily cut analog of gnu make. But make can also be taken from mingw.
msbuild is a utility for building MSVC projects from the command line. To use it, you need project files from MSVC.
In addition, Microsoft distributes the Build tools for visual studio package - this is a compiler + utilities without the studio itself. It is enough for assembly.
When installing both MSVS and Build Tools, Native Tools Command Promt is installed - a command line pre-configured for assembly - and build in it.

Answer 2

https://visualstudio.microsoft.com/downloads/#build...

Build Tools for Visual Studio 2017
These Build Tools allow you to build Visual Studio projects from a command-line interface. Supported projects include: ASP.NET, Azure, C++ desktop, ClickOnce, containers, .NET Core, .NET Desktop, Node.js, Office and SharePoint, Python, TypeScript, Unit Tests, UWP, WCF, and Xamarin.

In the installer, select the packages you need. This is NOT a complete Visual Studio, although the installer is similar.

Answer 3

Yes, compilation utilities are in separate files.